A Balloon Ride over the west bank of Luxor – To Go or Not to Go?.

Hussien starts off the ‘sales’ pitch by telling us that the Balloon Ride is expensive, and that there are 32 people in the basket with you – plus of course the Pilot. And you must get up super early to get to the launch site. And it’s possible that the Balloons won’t fly because the wind is wrong, or there’s too much sand in the air.

Given that Cairo is under a Sand Storm watch – We do hesitate for a second – but then Hussien continues by telling us that it is unbelievably good.

To go or Not to go? But I loved my balloon ride in Turkey – so we decide – Ok – we’re going.

Turns out that 15 of the 21 of us opt in – so we will make up 1/2 of the basket. That sounds a bit better – but I’m still wondering about crowding. Well – we will see.

The alarm rings, we dress warmly (I don’t know WHY I listen to Egyptians complaining about the temperature. They are wearing faux fur coats and I’m in short sleeves and shorts – and find it warm). But maybe it’s colder 300’ above Luxor.

We all pile into a large van – and head out. The city is very quiet – there are folks around, but the real action hasn’t started yet, thank goodness. So traffic is light, very very light by Cairo standards for sure.

In the pre-dawn, we cross over the Nile, and quickly find ourselves in a van parking lot! There must be over 100 white ‘tourist’ vans jockeying for parking locations, but our driver knows exactly were to go – so we’re parking right acoss from 2 balloons spread out on the sand. The first of these is ‘Our’ Balloon.

Most folks opt to stay in the van, but I’m way to curious to do that. So out I hop to check out the action. There are ‘coffee’ shops along the side away from the balloons – and probably 100 balloons laid out on the sand, ready to start the process as soon as they get the ok to fly!

I walk over to our balloon. The basket is on it’s side – and there are 3 Giant Fans on the right and left side of the basket. The basket is huge – figures if 33 people are going to be inside. And the size of the balloon is equally huge. Way larger than the balloons I ‘flew’ in Turkey for sure. The width of the opening is larger than the basket – and the balloon itself stretches at least 100’ off.

I am totally surprised when a voice from inside the basket say – hi! A face peeks out of a foothole in the basket – and I ask – who are you? Maybe a better way might have been to say hi back – I’m Leslie – Who are you. But never mind – too late to fix mistakes.

He explains he’s part of the crew! I then realize that what I’d taken to be an empty set of steps is now the resting place for 4 other guys – and they are taking out drums to entertain themselves before the balloon gets launched. I’m chatting with them when suddenly folks are running past me in all directions – sprinting to their assigned Balloons. The ‘GO’ signal has sounded.

Everyone has his assigned job. Guys man each of the Giant fans, and 3 other guys open up the mouth of the Giant Balloon. The fans fill the balloon with air – slowly at first, then increasingly effective as more and more of the silk gets filled. The guys walking around inside the balloon straighten folds, push out the sides, and then check that things are going correctly.

The pilot arrives – walks the interior of the Balloon – just like a pilot inspecting his airplane, and then he signals to the crew that the fire will be starting. A huge flame erupts from the center of the basket – hot air is driven into the air filled balloon, and it starts slowly to rise up.

What seems like a slow process accelerates as the Balloon fills, and starts to float over our heads. Suddenly there’s a tap on my arm – Andrea has joined me to watch. Victor, Andrea and I decide to share a section of the huge basket. Over the noise of the flame – the pilot explains that there are 9 sections – one for him and 4 on each side. 4 people max can go in each basket section – but one group will be 3. We opt to be 3.

That settled we wait for a few moments as the crew pushes the basket up right and readies the basket for us to clamber in. The sides are high – to my chest for sure – so no falling out! I watch how other folks get into their sections – and the teams bring a step stool up so we can get a start on the height. But to get down off the rim, we have to drop down 3.5 feet. I do a horse descent – super glad for that training – and suddenly everyone is in the basket. We are instructed on the landing position – bend your knees hard, duck your head, put your hands on the cords on the side of the basket and DON’T move until the pilot gives the all clear.

The crew has stopped holding the fans – and are now circling the basket holding it down while the Pilot get’s the engines ready to take us up. The air in the balloon has to be heated before the crew can let go – but there’s an exciting minute or so while the crew puts all their weight into keeping the balloon on the ground.

The pilot signals the crew to let go – and we wave goodbye! Suddenly we are flying.

Our balloon rises quickly – and now that I’m not paniced – I take a look around. There are over 100 balloons flying – We are in the middle of the pack – but 2nd to go up. The balloons were laid out in such a way as to keep enough space between the balloons to avoid collisions. I’m guessing they also control ‘lift-off’ time to stagger the balloons further.

The ride up is actually quiet and the view is amazing. We are looking towards the hills that seperate Luxor from the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens and the pilot explains that we definitely don’t want to go over those hills – There’s no easy place to land. And we aren’t allowed to cross the Nile for exactly the same reason. It would be really hard to find a landing space for one of these huge balloons in Luxor City.

So we are hoping to drift North towards Cairo where there is a good place to land the balloons.

But right now – he’s going to spin the balloon and the basket so we can all get a Pano picture of the sunrise over Luxor. Insanely beautiful. I’m so happy.

We drift over towns on the west bank of the Nile – Victor loves the view of the roof tops – it’s HO scale! I’m just enjoying the breeze, the feeling of flying, and the thrill of being up so high.

My heart is definitely racing! This is so beautiful. Much better than the balloon ride in Turkey!

Folks in another basket ask our Pilot how much training he has – and after quiping that this is his first try – admits that to be a Pilot you must do 3 years of training and get something like 1000 hours of experience before you can take up a balloon on your own – let alone with guests.

He then starts explaining about landing – reminds us of the landing position – and then shows us where it is safest to bring the balloon down. Only then does he also explain that it’s almost impossible to hit a good spot – so we need to be prepared to stay in the landing position till his all clear.

Our 90 minute flight is almost over – and to say it has flown by is an understatement! Wonderful.

We start to decend – and while several of the balloons are already down in the right place, we decend a bit quicker than our Pilot planned – and we are going to be landing in a rougher area than he likes. He cautions us again about the landing position – and then asks us to assume it!

We are only 20 feet above the sand and rock – and the crew has driven around to be directly below us with the truck parked safely to the side. As we decend – the crew grabs the basket and tugs it into a flatter part of the landing area.

Then once again they put all their weight into holding us down. The balloon as a different idea and makes a quick dash for the sky – but loses the battle and falls gentle to the ground.

Now most of the crew stop hanging onto the basket and switch jobs. The silk of the balloon can not be torn – so they have somehow spread a large mat on the rocks and sand where we have landed and pull the lower part of the balloon onto that mat. There is still a bit of air in the upper part of the balloon so they team up to fold and twist the lower part of the balloon, safely protected by the mat, and pull it forward into a fold. Pull, twist, fold, Pull, twist, fold – repeat until the balloon has been emptied of all the air – and safely carried onto a truck.

Next it’s our turn. The crew circles around the basket helping folks out of their sections. We were the last section in – so we’re the last section out. And it’s not like getting out of bed, but it’s easier than getting up from the ground without using your hands! Victor waits until both Andrea and I are safely out of the basket and in the hands of the crew before climbing out himself.

Now we must board a flat bed truck to be taken back to our van. Remember we were last out … well – everyone else is already sitting in the truck bed – we have to squeeze in. This is made more interesting by the fact that the side of the flat bed has to be raised to hold us all in. Us and 29 of our closest friends cuddle up on the bed of the truck with some members of the crew. Other crew members sit on top of the truck Cab!

It’s about a 5 minute drive – 30 minute walk – to where the vans are waiting. We get off the truck bed, into to the Van – and all of us cheer! We’ve done it – and it was super fun.

My heart is racing the entire ride back to the hotel for a quick breakfast. Surprisingly there’s an Egyptian Gal with a Chef’s badge working the omlet station! I’m so surprised – it’s one of the few women I’ve seen working since we got to Egypt. We start to chat and I tell her that my daughter and my granddaughter are also chefs! She asks about what they do – and without mention the animal – I explain that Adrienne used to butcher animals and use the meat to make sausages and that Anais is a running a bar and the head Mix-ologist. She says – say hello to them from a Chef in Egypt!

So Hello Adrienne and Anais from Chef Yasmine!

Now we regroup for the moments this tour has been working towards – visiting the tombs of the Valley of the Kings and the tombs in the Valley of the Queens.

Hussein explains that there are 32 tombs in ‘good’ condition in the valley of the Kings, but only 5 are open to visits each day. They rotate which of the 5 will be open – but always include one of the ‘Super Stars’! And he thinks 2 of the 5 of the ones open today are amazing!

But first we are starting with the place that King (Queen) Hapshepsut had built to be mummified. Imagine – this was built for just 40 days of use! And every Pharoah had one. Despite the efforts of her nephew to remove her name from the lists of Pharoahs, this survived quite intact – and was an amazing place to visit.

The outside is more amazing than the inside – but still – pretty cool. On the ground floor on the left side of the building (a 3 story hehemoth with a huge entrance staircase) are some well preserved carvings celebrating the Expedition to Punt – still with some of the original 4000 year old coloring). This is one of the few military victories for Hatshepsut – doesn’t it surprise you that she believed in compromise over the sword? We check those out, climb the steps up to the actually Temple, and then Hussein explains that because so many tourists visit these temples – as of 6 years ago – the government banned all guides from entering.

It was determined that having the guides in with their tour groups delayed folks from quickly leaving the inner chambers – and I have to admit that most folks move a lot faster when someone isn’t trying to get them to see a particular carving.

Hussein outlines the ‘top’ things to watch for – including the stunning blue sky with stars in the Santuary. I recognize and gleefully photograph the image celebrating the fact that this Pharoah ruled both upper and lower Egypt. It’s clearly Horus and Set holding ropes that knot around the spine (for stability) to the lungs. I particularly love the fact that in this rendition the feet of the Gods are so vividly pushing down on the lungs to get more pressure on the knot.

There are frequent occurances of the Lives Life slogan.

Unlike the paintings on the bottom floor – the carvings in the Santurary are High Relief and very well done. Given that her nephew tried to erase her – it’s a miracle that her Mortuary Temple survived.

I meet an Egyptian family wearing of all things – Disney attire! They pose for a picture with me – what fun!

Next stop – the Valley of the Kings. First stop Tomb of Ramses IV – and as Hussein predicted – it’s extraordinary.

One of my concerns has always been that the Valley of the Kings – because of the massive amount of tourists that visit it – will disappoint. I’m pleased to report that I was wrong. The carvings are truly magnificant – from the Book of the Dead carved into the walls to help the Pharoah’s Ka find it’s way to heaven to the stars on the ceiling to full color (4000 years old people) images of his attendance in different colored robes, to the magnificant ceiling – still highly colored.

I can’t read the Hieroglics – but I can admire them.

After all of Hussein’s efforts – I do recognize the symbol for Ra giving Life to the Pharoah!

The way into the tomb is fairly straight – and easy – and again guides are not allowed in so the stream of folks moves fairly quickly. Yet again I run into another Egyptian Family – also touring the tombs with their 1 year old son. Did I get a picture – of course!

Hussian challenged us to find the image of the sky – a woman bending at her hips and shoulders to protect the land. Her legs are firmly planted on the land, her hips to shoulder are the sky, and from the shoulders her arms reach back down to the earth. It’s a very powerful way of seeing the world.

There are also full colored carving of the Pharoah taking the boat thru the night to reach heaven. Not surprisingly – the carved boat looks very much like the one found near King Korfu at the GEM.

Hussein also challenged us to keep our eyes out for snakes – a re-occuring theme in tombs of this period. There are good and bad snakes of course – the good ones protect the Pharoah, the bad ones provide challenges he must overcome to get to Heaven.

One last challenge – see if you can find the ‘good’ people and the ‘bad’ people. The ‘good’ people are shown walking upright to greet their God, the ‘bad’ people are shown upside down, and sometimes headless on their way to Egyptian hell.

Our next tomb is the one created for the sons of Rameses II. Given that he had close to 50 sons – there were lots of folks to celebrate – and the tomb is fairly large.

We pause for a photo of the plaque showing where the tomb of King Tut Ankh Amun was found – they charge extra to enter the tomb ($20 US) – and Hussein warns us that it is small, crowded and empty. There are not even any carvings because he died so young.

We also get to visit the Tomb of Rameses VI – originally intended for Rameses V but quickly repurposed for Rameses VI. Like the one for Rameses IV – it’s covered with paintings – but the carvings at the top level are much less impressive and have been damaged. You have to continue walking downwards to get to the ‘good stuff’.

I particularly liked the carving showing Rameses VI on his throne and suplicants coming to him up a staircase. They represent the different tribes he had conquored! Again its the richness of the blue and yellow colors that is most surprising. How can artifical colors, created by chemist 4000 years ago have lasted so long?

In this tomb I easily find the upside down folks heading for their punishment – They are actually carved in Low Relief right below their more fortunately fellows heading to heaven!

This tomb goes on and on – as it spirals downward – the colors are better preserved and the carvings become High Relief – clearly the artists started at the lowest level.

Hussein explains that when the 40 days required to mummify the body was finished – all work immediately stopped on that Pharoah’s tomb, the body was sealed inside and the artists moved on to the tomb of the next Pharoah.

My favorite image in this tomb – just for the use of color – shows the Pharoah on his chair holding blue and white colored staffs crossed, a red sash that is tied and flows down to the hem of his robe, and an offering of a Lotus Flower.

At the lowest levels – this tomb is insanely beautifully decorated – and at the very lowest level there is the final burial chamber – with it’s images of the sky as a woman bent over the earth to protect it.

The colors and carvings at this level are breathtaking.

Without Hussein’s guidence I can only guess at the meanings – but I easily find the snakes – both good and bad, and the details are just wonderful.

We then visit the tomb of Rameses III – I do love the crocodile details and take a close up image of the Pharoah (identified by the snake shown on his forehead ready to spit posion at his enemies offering smoking incense to a God. I am reminded yet again that High Relief makes a huge difference!

There is also a surprising image of a large block of stone sliding down a ramp. Is this a hint at building techniques?

Did I mention the other Egyptian family I met who had brought their 2 year old son to view the tombs. Friday is a day off for Egyptians – which explains why today I’m meeting Egyptians among the hoards of Foreign Tourists!

We get back on the bus – and Hussein has a treat for us – the Egyptian version of Lays Potato chips! Yum!

We move on the Valley of the Queens – where we are offered access to two tombs. One has been severly damaged by water coming in over the years from the Nile, but the 2nd one is my personal favorite.

Unlike most tombs which just celebrate a Pharoah and at best have interesting scenes of the conquests marching towards the Pharoah with their hands tied behind their backs – this one has a very loving story to tell.

The Prince buried here was the Pharoah’s favorite and his death was a shock. So the images on the walls of the tomb show the father first telling his Queen that he will return and the son is shown walking behind the grieving couple. The young prince is identified by his side hairlock and the Ostrich feather he proudly carries. In another scene his father introduces him to the Gods, and in the last scene – the father is seen leaving the tomb with his son among the Gods.

I’m emotional just writing about this story. It is told so clearly and so beautifully.

Like the best of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings – the carvings are high relief, the colors brilliant and the story told well.

Our last tomb is the least impressive – although it is much more famous – it’s the tomb of Titi. Unfortunately the damage by the water seeping in and out of the tomb has destroyed the colors and made the carving hard to see. Because they are so damaged, glass panels have been placed over them – making them hard to see and a challenge to photograph.

We board our bus and head back to the hotel for a mixed grill lunch and an afternoon of leisure. Victor and I grab a nap – then try to take a walk outside. We manage to go in the wrong direction – so we quickly run out of anywhere to walk.

We are approached by two different gentlemen – who say that they remember seeing us at breakfast in the hotel.

Fortunately – Hussein had mentioned that this had become the newest ‘come-on’ – so we know to ignore them. But isn’t that funny – twice – about 5 minutes apart.

We return to the hotel, eat dinner – and go to bed. Later tonight (like 1:30 AM) we have to wake up, pack our bags, and check-out. We fly to Cairo at about 4:30 AM and definitely can’t be late.

Signing off for a few hours of rest – The Soup Lady